


die nacht streckt ihre finger aus

by green_tea31



Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Human Mac, Inspired By Tumblr, M/M, Vampire Jack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-21
Updated: 2018-11-04
Packaged: 2019-08-05 12:14:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16367597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/green_tea31/pseuds/green_tea31
Summary: Vampire AU. Three scenes from a world where Jack Dalton is just a little bit different. Some things change, others stay the same.Update: Now with second chapter where they talk and then there is sex. That's it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was actually the first thing I wrote for this fandom and then hesitated to post it because I've never written Vampire anything before. Inspired by an Image Set from tumblr which I will link to as soon as I figure out how.  
> I have a rough draft of a second chapter where they actually talk about stuff and then there's smut. If I find the time and courage I might edit and post it in time for Halloween. 
> 
> Additional Warnings for a somewhat painful injury and blood drinking, but then again, this is a Vampire AU so people probably expect that.
> 
> English is my second language. Self-betaed. All mistakes are my own.
> 
> Title taken from a poem by Sarah Kirsch which roughly translates to 'the night extends her fingers' which is gorgeous like everything she's written.

_exposition_

It’s dark outside. Mac is fiddling with a paperclip, the growing pile of discarded metal at his feet attesting to the fact that he’s been unable to distract himself, stuck in his head, thoughts circling back to one thing again and again.

His new overwatch is a _vampire_.

Mac wasn’t sure at first if he was seeing things. Dalton must be very accomplished at blending in, passing for human baseline, but from the moment Jack Dalton punched Mac in the face, there was this nagging feeling in the back of Mac’s head that there’s more to Dalton than the facade the man presents to the world.

That there is _something_ different about him.  

Nobody had warned Mac about his new overwatch’s otherworldly nature, only Dalton’s strength and reflexes during their fight had clued Mac in. He didn’t try to ask Dalton about it afterwards, either, too afraid of the intensity in Dalton’s eyes despite Mac’s bravado.

Mac has known other vampires before Jack Dalton. He’s had a couple of classmates at MIT who’d been changed, werewolves, too.

Still, none of them had carried themselves quite like Jack Dalton does, like he's the alpha predator in any room, like there's no one who could realistically offer him a challenge. Dalton is intimidating in a way Mac isn’t used to and that unsettles him because normally Mac is used to being able to meet any challenge using his considerable intellect.

Jack Dalton…doesn’t _fit_.

Dalton is irreverent, sarcastic and, as Mac suspects, much smarter than he pretends to be. He’s an enigma, riling Mac up whenever possible, but incredibly protective of his EOD, a silent shadow to Mac in the field.

What has Mac really unsettled though…

It’s an accepted custom that those EOD techs who work with a vampire occasionally help out their protectors with the vampires’ more _exotic_ needs and Mac isn’t really sure if he’s ready to do the same for Jack Dalton. The thought of being that exposed, being that vulnerable in front of somebody else, it’s… _unsettling_. Never mind that the guy seems to hate him.

Mac tries to console himself with the fact that Dalton has only sixty-three days left in Afghanistan and, like all vampires in the military his overwatch has been issued with blood capsules. As long as the two of them don’t get into a situation where Dalton will be cut off from his supply they were fine.

No need to worry.

 

_rising action_

They’ve been stuck in this cave for two days now. The kid is skittish around Jack, unusually so, since Mac has become much more open and relaxed after Jack decided to stay in the sandbox to continue watching his EOD tech’s back. Their banter has taken on an air of familiarity, has become the kind of friendly, comfortable teasing that feels like it’s been part of their dynamic for years, like they’ve known each other for years.

Jack’s tried to keep his distance from the young genius, tried not to become too attached but in the end he hadn’t been able to stay away. The thought of leaving Mac to a different overwatch, someone else who isn’t as invested in Mac’s safety as Jack is, had been almost _excruciatingly_ painful. Jack tries to tell himself that his need to take care of the kid, to keep him close isn’t attraction in its infancy, the kid is _twenty_ , for God’s sake.

Jack is very good at lying to himself, he’s had centuries to perfect his technique.

Still, the forced closeness of the last two days has him on edge. The fact that Mac hasn’t quite managed to meet his eyes while talking since they’d been forced to take their little break doesn’t help. Jack is normally a patient guy, centuries of living having inured him against all kinds of boredom, even though he likes to pretend he gets bored easily, makes people underestimate him, but right now he’s ready to confront the kid about it. Bring whatever has the kid distancing himself from Jack into the open and then, hopefully, find a way to deal with it.

Jack has just found Mac, he isn’t ready to lose him again.  

“Jack?” Mac has returned to the small fire Jack’s been keeping alive in the back of the cave while Jack was lost in his thoughts. His hands are nervously twisting around each other and Mac seems ready to bolt if Jack makes one wrong move, like a particularly skittish animal.

Jack’s had enough.

“Sit down kid and tell me what’s going on. You’ve barely looked me in the eyes when you’re talking since we’ve been stuck in this cave and I wanna know what’s been eatin’ you.”

It’s the wrong thing to say. Mac flinches back like he’s been hit and stammers something unintelligible and if Jack didn’t know better he’d say that is fear in Mac’s eyes. Now, why the hell would the kid be afraid of him and why does that thought feel like someone’s put a spear through Jack’s heart?

And then it hits him.

Oh, _Angus_ …

Jack is an idiot. They’ve been stuck here for two days, Jack’s complained often enough that the tightwads who control his access to the blood pills Jack takes on a regular basis only ever hand out enough for a week. Jack was due for a refill _yesterday_. The issue has never really come up between Jack and his EOD because until now there’s never been a need to talk about it. Until now, Jack has never potentially been cut off from his supply…

Still, Jack is an _idiot_.

He knows what happens between other EODs and their overwatches, if those overwatches also happen to be vampires, knows it is custom for his brethren to take blood from EOD techs even when they’re not caught in a freaking sandstorm and forced to wait it out stuck in a cave together. But the thought that Mac expects Jack to take what he needs even though the kid clearly fears even the thought of it, hurts Jack in a way he hadn’t thought possible for his old heart anymore.

Never mind the fact that Jack almost never takes human blood. To him, the process is intimate in a way that surpasses everything else, even sex. Most vampires who reach a certain (Jack’s) age become indifferent to the connection that forms between vampire and human during feeding, centuries blunting the emotional impact and giving way to a solely hedonistic focus on the physical pleasure of the act. But whatever it is that makes Jack come back to the human world time and again, reminding him of his own humanity he still clings to by a thread, it also keeps the intimacy of the process alive for him. He couldn’t just take from Mac and then callously continue their partnership as if nothing else had happened.

That doesn’t mean that Jack doesn’t _want_.

Mac is a constant study in distraction to Jack. By now, Jack can locate Mac by his heartbeat and scent alone. The kid always smells like chemicals and sand. To be fair everything in this hellhole smells like sand but underlying that is the almost sickly sweet metallic tang of Mac’s blood, and most days Jack has to seriously fight the urge to bury his nose in Mac’s neck and just breathe him in.

Nevermind all the other things Jack would like to do to his EOD tech which Jack has successfully been lying to himself about for weeks now. Jack _might_ have developed a slight problem.

But for now, he needs to reassure Mac that he has no intention of forcing anything on the kid, that Mac is as safe _from_ Jack as Jack keeps Mac safe from everything else. Carefully Jack puts down the little notebook he always carries with him and which he’s been fiddling with for the past half hour trying to put his thoughts on paper and gets up.

His eyes find Mac’s in the dim light of the fire and, like a deer in headlights, it seems to keep the kid rooted to the spot, for once unable to look away. Jack steps closer, slowly, oh so slowly, and raises his hands, carefully cradling Mac’s cheeks, making sure the kid keeps looking into Jack’s eyes, keeps seeing that Jack’s as honest as he can be, that Jack would stake himself before he’d do anything to hurt the kid.

“Angus…” Mac startles, but Jack’s hands keep him steady, keep him focused on Jack. It’s the first time he’s ever used Mac’s first name. “Whatever you’re thinking right now kid, stop. I ain’t gonna hurt you.“

 Mac swallows, his voice is rough when he finally speaks. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Jack…”

Jack deliberately traces Mac’s face with his fingers, brings his right hand down over Mac’s cheek, his throat until his fingers find the pulse point. He presses down, gently. There can be no confusion what Jack is referring to now. He doesn’t try to be intentionally cruel but he needs to make sure that Mac gets it, needs to make sure that Jack is never forced to watch that fear in Mac’s eyes again when he’s looking at his overwatch.

“I will never take this from you, Mac.” Mac’s eyes widen and he swallows nervously. For a moment Jack thinks that he blew it, that Mac still doesn’t understand or doesn’t believe him. Then suddenly the kid deflates, closes his eyes and leans forward, resting his forehead against Jack’s for a moment while his hands grab Jack’s sides to keep himself steady.

“I, okay…” Jack can almost physically feel as Mac’s world rearranges itself, sliding Jack back into the category of _safe_. Or perhaps it’s the first time he feels safe with Jack at all, perhaps he’s been better at hiding this fear from Jack than Jack suspects, the whole time waiting for the other shoe to drop.

The thought makes Jack sick.

For now though, Jack allows himself a moment of respite, a moment of enjoying the closeness. He closes his eyes and _breathes_.

   

_climax_

“Jack!” Mac’s voice is hazy through the fog surrounding Jack’s brain.

His partner is kneeling next to him, trying to keep the blood inside Jack with his bare hands. They’re cut off from the team. The last Jack’s heard from Riley through the comms had been a panicked “get out of there” and then there’d been gunshots and the desperate need to get Mac out of the trap the two had found themselves in.

“Jack, come on open your eyes, I can’t…” Mac sounds desperate, voice rough with unshed tears.

Mac drags him closer, wrapping one arm around Jack’s shoulders and brings his other arm closer to Jack’s face, _wrist exposed_ …Jack tries to jerk back but only succeeds in aggravating his already painfully throbbing gunshot wounds. Dammit, he _can’t_. “Mac…”

But Mac doesn’t let up. “I know what you’re thinking Jack. But we both know if you don’t get blood into your system in the next five minutes you’re going to die. Whatever they shot you with, those weren’t regular bullets and your wounds aren’t really healing the way they should. They’re not healing at all.”

Mac tightens his arm around Jack’s shoulders and presses his face into Jack’s neck, trying to keep his breathing steady. The closeness messes with Jack’s head. They’re in the middle of an active warzone, Jack is bleeding out on the floor of an abandoned warehouse and all he can think about is how much he _wants_. That alluring scent that is Mac’s blood and has been haunting him for the better part of a decade is right there, his for the taking but the thought of having that closeness, having that closeness from Mac just this once and then never again is... _excruciating_.

Years ago he’d promised a then twenty year old Mac looking at him with fear in those beautiful blue eyes that Jack would never take his blood, never force that kind of intimacy, that kind of vulnerability on the young EOD tech and now Mac was offering, _freely_.

Mac raises his head and his eyes are bright with the tears he stubbornly refuses to shed, making those baby blues look almost manic in the dim light of the warehouse.

“You don’t really think I have a better chance of taking on Gonzales and his two dozen men without you, do you, Jack?” Mac’s voice is hard, uncompromising and yeah, that’s the sum of it. In the end, Jack is still Mac’s overwatch, hell, Jack is _Mac’s_ and without Jack and his preternatural abilities Mac is pretty much dead, too.

Jack closes his eyes for a moment and raises his hand to Mac’s face, gently cupping his cheek. Mac’s eyes widen as Jack grips the offered wrist with his other hand and brings it closer to his mouth. His eyes lock on Mac’s and Jack closes his mouth around the wrist, teeth emerging and really, it’s as easy as breathing.

Jack drinks.

Mac slumps forward into Jack’s embrace. Jack didn’t want to take so much but his wounds had apparently been worse than either he or Mac had realized and if Jack wants to get them both out of this alive he needs to be on top of his game and that means taking enough to heal his wounds and get his strength and reflexes back.

With Mac’s blood coursing through his veins it’s easy to take his boy into his arms and make his way outside. He bypasses Gonzales’ men quietly, Mac’s needs are more important than any thought of revenge right now.  Exfil is only five minutes away and his returning senses tell him that Riley and Bozer are already waiting for them.

He grips Mac tighter. Tries not to think about the fact that he knows how Mac’s blood tastes now, that he already wants to taste it again, preferably while having Mac beneath him, naked. Getting the kid to safety is all that counts. Jack can deal with his new reality later.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They talk and then they have sex. That's it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not quite in time for Halloween but I occasionally have to do some actual work on my thesis if I ever want to finish and get a job to finance my fanfiction habit. It's a vicious circle.
> 
> Don't look for plot in this. It's emotional porn and then there's actual porn.  
> Might add a couple of timestamps because I have so much headcanon for this AU and want to inflict it upon someone.  
> For now, this is complete.

_falling action_

They’re going to have to talk about it.

It’s been two days since they came back from the mission that went to hell faster than Mac can reshape a paperclip and, since then, Jack’s been avoiding Mac whenever possible. Oh, Mac is sure Jack would deny it, finding some excuse for why he hasn’t dropped by Mac’s house since then, but Mac would know it for the lie it is.

So, yeah. Avoiding Mac.

Which is the reason why Mac is sitting in his truck in front of Jack’s apartment building at three in the morning, trying to work up the nerve to actually go up there and confront Jack.  

He’s rubbing his wrist, nervously, the wrist that Jack bit two days ago to drink Mac’s blood and Mac hasn’t been able to stop thinking about it since then, the feeling of being so close to Jack, almost as if they’d…

Dammit. Mac’s been fighting his feelings for Jack for a while now. Somewhere between their first meeting, the close calls and near death experiences they survived over the years, Mac’s feelings went from best friend, brother, partner to _please don’t die, I love you, can’t live without you_ and Mac’s not sure he even noticed when things changed.

He knows he hasn’t been afraid of Jack in a long time.

There’s no one who knows Mac better than Jack, who knows every little detail about him, every success, every failure and (almost) every insecurity. He’s never been so open, so vulnerable with another person and he doesn’t mind at all because in the end there’s no one Mac trusts more.

There’s also no one who frustrates Mac more.

Jack keeps Mac close, always. He seems to have a sixth sense just for Mac, knowing where his partner is even when they’re on opposite sides of the city. With everyone else that kind of closeness would feel like an invasion of privacy to Mac but with Jack it just doesn’t.

Because it’s… _Jack_.

Mac has long since stopped trying to make sense of his feelings. Somewhere along the last few years Jack Dalton, soldier, spy, vampire, and Mac’s partner has made himself at home in Mac’s life and in his heart and that’s enough for Mac.

He’s still trying to work up the nerve to actually leave the car when his phone rings. It’s Jack. Because of course it is.

“Hey Partner, your car’s been sitting in front my building for half an hour now. You wanna come up or spend the night outside?” Jack asks, his voice dry as a desert.

Mac closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before he answers. “Be right up.”

 

Mac is standing in his living room, alive and breathing and Jack takes a moment to drink in the sight of his partner. He’s been dreading this conversation since the moment he handed Mac over to medical, still pale and unmoving because Jack had to take his blood to save both of them.

Jack hasn’t been able to stop thinking about it. The way it felt, drinking Mac’s blood, the connection between them flaring to life. Even now, Jack can still feel Mac in the back of his head, the faint remnants of the bond Mac’s blood established between them. Even one more drop right now, so close to the first time, would cement that bond into something permanent, tying them together for good and Jack has never felt so ashamed of wanting something so badly.

Oh God, how much he _wants_.

Jack clears his throat. “You should probably be at home, sleeping off the blood loss, Mac. Pretty sure medical told you to take it easy. That means not sitting in your car in my driveway at three in the morning like some kind of creepy stalker.”

“How would you know?” Mac asks quietly and Jack isn’t sure what he means but Mac continues “How would you know what medical told me? You cleared out pretty quickly after we came back. Haven’t seen you since.”

Jack winces. Yeah, he hasn’t exactly been subtle, has he?

“Look kid…” Jack starts but Mac isn’t finished.

“And stop calling me that. You always call me kid when you don’t want to talk about this, so just… _stop_ , alright?” Mac almost yells at him. He sounds frustrated, as if he’s trying to get Jack to understand something but Jack’s just too thick to get it.

“I’m sorry!” Jack manages to blurt out and winces at how hoarse he sounds. God, he wants nothing more than to take Mac into his arms and shield him from the world, even from Jack’s own insecurities. “I’m sorry I took your blood when I promised I’d never do that. I know I can’t possibly make up for it, but _please_ Mac, let me try. I don’t wanna lose you over this.”

Mac doesn’t say anything, just stars at him in disbelief and Jack’s starting to think that he missed something important.

Before he can say anything else, Mac gets that determined look in his eyes that he gets when he’s about to solve a particularly difficult problem and advances on Jack. His hands grab Jack’s shirt and Jack has only a moment to realize what is about to happen and that he possibly misunderstood the entire situation before Mac presses his mouth to Jack’s.

It starts as less of a kiss and more of a declaration of battle, but the moment Jack understands that he’s just been handed what he wanted most for the majority of the last ten years he’s all in. Jack’s hands come up, one cradling Mac’s face gently, the other pressing against the small of Mac’s back, pushing them together. Jack gentles the kiss, slows Mac down and Mac makes a frustrated noise against Jack’s lips but Jack resists. He’s been waiting for this for a long time and doesn’t want to rush it.

He also doesn’t want to hurt Mac. Jack knows himself, knows he needs to keep control of this or he risks hurting his partner. Even now, Jack can still taste the sweet tang of Mac’s blood and if he doesn’t reign himself in he’ll take it again and that would mean forcing Mac into something he might not actually want.

Just because Mac has kissed Jack, is still kissing him, doesn’t mean he wants to be tied to Jack for the rest of his life.

They make their way to Jack’s bedroom, losing clothes along the way. Mac’s shirt goes first while Jack has him pressed against the wall in the hallway. Their shoes and Jack's shirt are abandoned somewhere on the way but Jack has no recollection of that because Mac is too busy exploring Jack’s newly revealed skin with his mouth.

Jack’s still not sure he isn’t dreaming this. He’s been denying wanting this for so long that he almost expects to wake up from this particular dream like he’s done so many times before, wanting, _aching_ and alone.

But this time Mac is there with him. Jack walks him backwards to the bed and follows his partner down into the soft sheets. Mac smiles at him and Jack’s hand is in Mac’s hair, gripping tightly where he’d been so careful before. When Mac tries to get his hands between them to work on the rest of their clothes, Jack captures his hands and presses them into the bed next to Mac’s head.       

“Don’t, Mac just…let me do this. I gotta keep control, don’t wanna hurt ya.” Jack all but pleads with Mac. Jack’s other hand comes up, cradling Mac’s face and the kid looks at him, eyes glazed over and drunk with arousal. He grins at Jack.

He’s so beautiful.

“Look at you, all happy like that.” Jack drawls and can’t help but smile back at his partner.

“That because of me then?” He asks Mac and Mac doesn’t answer, only grinning wider, relaxing into the bed, hands going slack where Jack had put them.

Jack takes Mac’s surrender as the invitation it is and goes back to kissing him while his hands start exploring Mac’s skin. Jack traces the scar left from the gunshot wound that almost killed Mac and thanks the God he isn’t sure he believes in anymore that his partner is still there.

He lets his mouth wander south, taking one of Mac’s nipples into his mouth, sucking gently and Mac moans and arches towards Jack in response.

He’s pretty sure he could come from just this, tasting Mac’s skin and listening to every sound Jack can wring out of the beautiful boy beneath him. Mac is less patient, however, and lets his legs fall open, pressing himself up against Jack, rubbing their erections together and Jack’s definitely happy to move things along.

He sets about removing the rest of Mac’s clothes, exposing Mac’s skin for Jack to appreciate, to touch, to kiss. Mac’s cock springs free and Jack immediately wraps a calloused hand around it, leisurely exploring the flesh with slow, measured movements and Mac just…breaks apart. He throws his head back and lets out a stream of unintelligible words, moaning Jack’s name, all while his hands are still pliant where Jack had placed them earlier.

After a while Jack reluctantly draws back from exploring every inch of Mac’s body and raises himself of the bed. Mac watches patiently, grinning like the cat that got the canary while Jack removes the rest of his own clothes. Jack fumbles for a moment in the top drawer of his nightstand, sure that he has at least some supplies left somewhere, before lowering himself back down, covering Mac’s naked skin with his own.

Jack opens the bottle he removed from the nightstand and coats his fingers in the thick liquid looking up at Mac questioningly. He’s not opposed to being on the receiving end himself but just the thought of being _inside_ Mac nearly has him coming on the spot and Jack is old enough to take pride in his ironclad control.

Ironclad when he isn’t naked, pressed against an equally naked Mac apparently, because his control is about to be shot to hell but Mac just makes an encouraging noise, raises a leg and obviously expects Jack to get on with the show.  

Jack can do that.

He lowers his hand between Mac’s legs and lightly traces the entrance before carefully pressing in a finger. Mac moves with him, yielding to Jack and encouraging him with small but insistent movements of his hips. Jack adds a second finger, slowly opening Mac up and takes in Mac’s dishevelled hair and the blissful expression on his face. Mac’s hands are still not moving and Jack has to take a deep breath at the implied _trust_ in that because Mac’s hands are never still, never idle, except apparently when Jack asks him to.

He adds a third finger, still as careful as he can and when he’s satisfied that Mac is ready he fumbles again for a few moments, trying to rip open the condom he’d placed next to them earlier while still touching Mac, gripping one hip tightly. Jack’s immune to all but the deadliest diseases but there are some that affect vampires and humans alike and he’s not about to take a risk with Mac’s safety.

Jack presses in, slowly, ruthlessly supressing the urge to just _take_. Jack’s breath is heavy against Mac’s throat where he presses kiss after kiss against the soft skin while his cock sinks into the tight heat, inch by inch.

When he can’t go any further, when he’s as deep inside Mac as he possibly can he raises his head and _looks._

Mac’s eyes are glassy with pleasure, unfocused in a way Jack has never seen. His skin is glistening, cock hard and leaking against his stomach and he looks at Jack as if there’s nothing else in the world as important as _this_.

Them together, in this moment.

It’s beautiful.

Jack starts to move, short slow thrusts as first to get Mac used to the feeling, to keep himself from moving too quickly, to keep himself from hurting Mac. He tries to gauge Mac’s reaction, looking for even the slightest wince, the slightest sign of pain.

It’s been a long time since Jack shared a bed with a human and he’s never felt about them like he feels about Mac, this blue-eyed boy who woke him up from his immortal stupor and dragged him back towards humanity. Mac who is human and mortal and so, so precious.

It doesn’t take long for Jack’s thrusts to become quicker, Mac starting to meet his movements where he’d been pliant before. Jack entwines his hands with Mac’s next to his head and noses at Mac’s throat. He doesn’t intend to take blood, just wants to breathe his partner in, and wants the scent and the warmth, the closeness.

But Mac… _bares_ his throat to Jack.

“ _Jack_ …” he sounds as wrecked as Jack feels. “ _Please_ , you can, if you want.”

Jack falters for a moment and stops moving, looks up at Mac, into his eyes and sees no fear, only acceptance and _love_. Mac’s eyes _shine_ with love and it’s entirely possible Jack is about to wake up from this dream.

Any moment now.

He doesn’t.

“ _Mac_.” Jack gasps out. “You know what that means. You can’t possibly want that.”

Jack didn’t think it was possible to look aroused and annoyed at the same time but Mac manages it just fine.

“ _Please_ …please give me the courtesy of knowing what I want for myself.” Mac states before tightening his muscles around Jack, where Jack’s still buried inside Mac and Jack has no idea how Mac can still use words with more than two syllables, but it’s entirely possible that Jack loses it for a bit.

He starts moving again, speeding up his thrusts and tightening the grip he still has on Mac’s hands. It doesn’t take long for either of them, Jack can feel himself rapidly nearing that edge where orgasm becomes inevitable and he wants to take Mac with him, wants to feel the faint connection in the back of his head spring to life as they tumble over the edge together. Jack lowers his mouth to Mac’s throat, licks a wet stripe over the soft skin and feels his teeth lengthening. Mac tilts his head in invitation and Jack… _bites_.

They fall.

Mac’s consciousness spills into Jack’s as Jack spills himself into Mac’s body. They’re twisted together so tightly that Jack loses track of where he ends and where Mac begins. Mac shudders beneath him, around him and welcomes Jack into his mind with the same warmth and acceptance he had welcomed Jack into his body and Jack is so incredibly thankful that he found this beautiful blue-eyed boy in Afghanistan and followed him home.

Jack is _home_.

He presses a kiss against the mark he left on Mac’s throat and Jack can feel him almost humming with contentment. Tomorrow they’re going to wake up and actually talk about their future. The mark will heal over, but Jack will renew it, whenever Mac lets him, which will be often, because Mac is Jack’s and Jack is Mac’s and in the end that’s the most important thing.

For now, they rest.

 

_dénouement_

Mac is beautiful in the early morning light. To be fair, Jack pretty much always thinks Mac is beautiful but there is something about the glow of the first sunrays that illuminates him from the inside, lets him shine in a way people so rarely do, the way Mac’s soul always shines to Jack, a homing beacon calling him back whenever Jack’s in danger of losing his fragile hold on humanity.

In all his years of existence no one’s ever called to Jack quite the way Mac does.

It’s _glorious_.

Jack’s propped up next to a still sleeping Mac, tracing Mac’s body with his eyes. He follows with his fingers, ghosting over the puncture marks on his partner’s beautiful neck that Jack left there last night and dear God, how did Jack get this lucky?

Mac’s breathing changes, he’ll wake soon.

Jack smiles.  

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> On an unrelated note: Would anyone be interested in a Doctor Who crossover that will almost certainly turn into Mac/Jack? Probably won't start posting until early next year because of the aforementioned thesis but I have the entire thing planned out and written a couple of chapters. Just putting that out here because I'm still not comfortable enough with Tumblr to ask people over there.


End file.
